Thread Content
Use a small force to move a heavy object! Driving the high-value development of the polyolefin and coal-to-oil industries through specialty products Author/Source: Date: 2017-11-01 Clicks: 13 α-olefins (1-butene, 1-hexene, 1-octene, etc.) are important comonomers for producing high-performance high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE); they are also key raw materials for manufacturing advanced lubricants, plasticizers, surfactants, and other specialty chemicals. l High-end development and import substitution are the key directions for the upgrading of the polyolefin industry during the 13th Five-Year Plan period. l The industry tends to use 1-hexene and 1-octene as comonomers instead of 1-butene. l In recent years, several 1-hexene production facilities have been built and put into operation, but there is still a significant gap. l Accelerating the development and industrialization of α-olefins is essential for promoting the high-end development of this industry – the localization of α-olefins helps to improve the quality and competitiveness of chemical products. l The main methods for producing α-olefins include wax cracking, alkane dehydrogenation, ethylene oligomerization, and extraction separation; among these, ethylene oligomerization is the most common production method. Currently, the companies that possess ethylene oligomerization technology include Chevron Phillips Chemical (CPChem), Ethyl, Shell, BP Amoco, and Idemitsu, among others. The α-olefin production of CPChem, Shell, and BP Amoco together accounts for about 75% of the global total production. Sasol, which is involved in the indirect liquefaction of coal for oil production, is also one of the major producers of α-olefins. The industrialization of α-olefin products in China is progressing slowly, and production capacity remains insufficient. Only Sinopec Yanshan Petrochemical and CNPC Dushanzi Petrochemical have built industrial 1-hexene production facilities with capacities of 50,000 tons per year and 20,000 tons per year, respectively. The two units each utilize the ethylene oligomerization process for the synthesis of 1-hexene, which was independently developed by Yanshan Petrochemical and the Daqing Chemical Research Center of the Petroleum Chemical Research Institute. http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20171101/91473250747.jpg The commissioning of these two sets of facilities has helped to alleviate the shortage of 1-hexene in China, and it provides raw materials necessary for further optimizing the structure of high-end chemical products such as polyethylene, thereby helping to improve the quality of such products and their market competitiveness. Currently, CNPC uses 1-hexene as a monomer in LLDPE/FDPE plants to produce dozens of high-value-added polyethylene products such as chromium-based and metallocene-based types, as well as Z-N types; the performance of these products is on par with that of similar foreign products. The production of 1-octene in China remains non-existent; the product relies mainly on imports, with an annual import volume of around 40,000 tons. In December 2016, Maoming Petrochemical initiated a project to build China’s first 1-octene production facility with an annual capacity of 16,000 tons. The designed production capacities for 1-octene and 1-hexene are 10,000 tons and 6,000 tons respectively. The facility is scheduled to be completed in 2017, and once in operation it will drive the upgrading of the domestic polyolefin industry as well as the development of high-grade fully synthetic lubricants. The production technology for this device was jointly developed by Maoming Petrochemical and its partner companies. The FTO synthesis method for producing oil from coal through indirect liquefaction is also an important route for manufacturing α-olefins. Therefore, with low oil prices and high fuel taxes, domestic coal-to-liquid oil plants that produce α-olefin products can significantly improve the profitability of such projects. ——The trend toward higher-end chemical products is driving a growing demand for α-olefins. Currently, the industry tends to use 1-hexene and 1-octene as comonomers instead of 1-butene. In the rapidly developing metallocene polyethylene in recent years, 1-butene has been abandoned; instead, 1-hexene and 1-octene are used as comonomers to produce polyethylene products with a higher monomer content and superior properties. Due to a severe shortage of domestic 1-hexene and 1-octene copolymer monomers, China has long relied on expensive imports, which has severely hindered the upgrading of polyethylene products in the country. Currently, HDPE and LLDPE production plants still primarily use 1-butene as the comonomer. This leads to issues such as lower quality of polyethylene products, unreasonable structures, and a shortage of products in specialized grades. Although 1-hexene production facilities have been built and put into operation in recent years, there is still a significant gap. With the advancement of competitive strategies aimed at producing higher-end chemical products, the demand for 1-hexene and 1-octene in the downstream conversion processes will continue to increase over time. The 13th Five-Year Development Guidelines for the petrochemical industry stipulate that efforts should be accelerated to develop high-carbon LAO comonomers such as 1-hexene and 1-octene, in order to promote the industrialization of high-performance polyolefins. Yahua Consulting believes that accelerating the development and industrialization of α-olefin production technologies can not only improve the overall level of the polyethylene industry but also promote its development toward higher value-added products ； It also holds great significance for the advancement of high-end development in domestic coal-to-oil production via indirect liquefaction. It will also bring opportunities for suppliers of related technologies, equipment, etc.